Funnel Blueprints

Christopher Gaudreau
Tuesday, November 20, 2018

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How to Get Paid for Planning

A funnel blueprint, in its most basic form, is a diagram that shows each of your funnel pieces and how they all work together. Things like pages, emails, ads, blog posts and other elements are all organized into one visual communication. A diagram like this makes communicating the overall plan easier to potential clients, existing clients, your own team and any outsourced help you may have. Funnel blueprints are a great way to get everyone on the same page (literally).

However, funnel blueprints can and should be much more than a simple diagram. They act as a set of plans and instructions for the builders to execute on. The builders may be page builders, automation specialists, copywriters, media and whoever else will be involved in creating the funnel.

Blueprints Are For the Builders (Not the Client)

Think about it…

A real blueprint is a set of very technical drawings and instructions, making sure the build goes exactly to plan. In marketing we know "the sizzle sells the steak" Well, if the funnel is the steak, the blueprints are not the sizzle. A live working funnel is.

Clients would rather take a tour. That's why many architects and builders have model homes for buyers to check out. You may want to consider having your own model, a finished (yet unused) funnel for clients to check out... and one for each type of funnel that you can build (room for customizations of course).

Funnel Blueprints Are Very Necessary

Let's take that same model house and assume that the builder does NOT have a blueprint and only has the model to go look at (house hacking?). The builder can probably derive quite a bit of information by just checking out the model home... but not everything.

He can't see inside the walls to check out the framing, the plumbing, the wiring. He can't even tell what kind of paint is on the walls just by looking at it... did they use the right primer? Will it last more than 2 years? Are the trim pieces real wood? .... you get the point. Some things are still unseen and decisions need to be made by someone with the right education and experience to do so.

Even with what CAN be seen, you can bet your life that the builder will be drawing up a little blueprint of his own while he's checking out the model house (the best he can anyway) because he needs all the information gathered and and organized in one place so that later, when he's building, that he and his crew can reference.

Builders Can Blueprint Too (Somewhat)

They can definitely read them (they have to) and he can throw together some drawings himself if need be BUT a builder should really spend his days building to be doing his best work.

Architects specialize in creating the blueprints, those detailed sets of drawings and instructions needed to build what the client wants (an what the client doesn't even know they should want).

Architects know a whole lot about building things too. They know about the materials, the environmental considerations of the location being built on, the knowledge of what's actually possible with tools and so on. Architects also deal with the client in designing what they want and balancing that with reality and informing them about things they didn't know. Architects are ultimately the visionaries that see all sides and consider all things. They should spend their time making blueprints and then making sure the build is stays on track with those blueprints along the way.

Funnel Architects Sell

Architects are better equipped to sell the buildings. Not because pages and pages of technical instructions are appealing to buyers in any way but because architects have all the answers at their fingertips. They know the plan inside and out... they designed it!

So, the secondary purpose of a blueprint is to help sell. It's the “surface” of the blueprint that sells, the top 1-2 pages (leaving out all the detailed technical instructions). Those pages usually consist of a nice drawing of the finished product and a basic FOOTPRINT of the building. The footprint shows a nice overhead view of each story of the building. Easy to understand. Not a lot of technical info. Most people think this is the entire blueprint! But it's not... not even close.

That basic footprint can give clients a good idea of what the house will look like. How it will flow. How big the rooms are etc... and that stuff sells it.

In the world of funnels, our version of the "nice drawing of what the finished product will look like" come in the form of mockups, conceptual drawings of pages and other marketing assets. Mockups are a great way to SHOW without being specific (leaving room for customizations).

So, this is how architects sell:

1) Listen to what the client needs

2a) Show the footprint that fits what the clients needs

2b) Show the mockups.

2c) Show the model funnel, if you have one.

3) Then show the rest of the blueprint ONLY to instill confidence in the buyer that YOU have it ALL thought out, organized and under control.

4) Discuss the client's needs and wants further, speaking to the marvelous customization of that blueprint that only YOU as the architect can provide

5) Close the deal BEFORE creating their actual blueprint (yes… get paid to plan)

6) Create the actual blueprint (the detailed one) and deliver

7) Offer to build the funnel (if that’s your thing) or manage the build of the funnel (be the watchful eye making sure everything goes according to YOUR plan)

Are You Ready to be a Funnel Architect?

In a world where the technical implementation of funnels is becoming increasingly less technical, lowering the barrier to entry, you can bet that the competition will grow. How will you stand out? How will demonstrate your expertise and professionalism?

I believe the time has come for a new type of marketing professional, not a funnel builder but a funnel architect.